Tag Archives: Public Health England

The United Kingdom’s regulator for medicinal items, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has officially classified electronic cigarettes as medical devices. This is the step taken in an effort to what may become the official marketing of electronic cigarette devices as cessation devices. This is very big news for the vapor products industry, and while it is not fully relevant to the US market, it is a major step for the industry as a whole, and it sets an incredible example the US needs to take note of.

Prior to this landmark decision on the part of MHRA, vapor products were not permitted to be recommended by general practitioners as they were not considered licensed products. Because of this monumental decision, vapor products will now be able to truly compete with established cessation methods in the UK, such as nicotine gums and nicotine patches, and physicians as well as other healthcare providers will be able to recommend them for usage.

This is an excellent example being demonstrated as a model for nations such as the US, whose own policies and politics regarding e-cigarettes are not yet established. Across the pond, we are currently awaiting the FDA to make a final decision on the ability of today’s e-cigarettes to even continue being sold.

The health agencies in the UK have been staunch and stubborn in regards to their opinions of e-cigarettes, and they have seen the potential they hold for quite some time now. Last year, Public Health England’s report on e-cigarette use, and their independent findings that vapor cigarettes are 95% healthier than traditional tobacco cigarettes made worldwide headlines, having come from a legitimate source making such a bold claim. The UK has been blatantly vocal about the promise these products hold for people looking to quit smoking, and with 20% of the British adult population as smokers, they are truly committed to their betterment and health.

We applaud the UK on their decision, which we know was based on a great amount of research, studies, and common sense. We are excited to see where the market is headed, and look forward to what these revolutionary products are going to do for the public health sector in the near future.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) recently reported positively on the recently reviewed data, showing that tobacco cigarette use is at an all-time record low of 14.9% for the year 2015, demolishing the previous year’s record of 16.8%. While the CDC is quick to congratulate themselves on this monumental success, claiming it is their ads that have inspired people to drop the habit, there is a counterclaim coming from England: it’s really the e-cigs.

This is not exactly a surprise to us, as the timing seems rather obvious. More people vaping, less people smoking. Sure, the ads coming from the CDC, graphic and dramatic as they may be, are certainly deserving of some credit, however, smokers are fully understanding of what their options are. Options being vapor smoking.

Earlier this year, Public Health England released a comprehensive, evidence-based study that examined the usage habits of electronic cigarette users, and the results were very much eye-opening. They deemed that when all factors are weighed in, electronic cigarette devices are 95% safer than traditional cigarettes. Not 50%, not 75%, but 95% safer. And this is coming from a highly intelligent, first world nation that has the ability to spend large amounts of capital on such an in-depth study. The study also provided straightforward data on how users were using the devices, and it concluded that e-cigarettes are directly related to the declining rate of smokers in the UK.

At the same time, while England is promoting the use of e-cigarettes as a significant and convenient way to opt out of your smoking habit in favor of a gentler alternative, the US is concentrating on their semantics. Using carefully chosen words to attempt to say that e-cigarettes are basically the same as tobacco products, the CDC is more concerned with minimizing the e-cigarette issue than it is embracing alternative options for people who want options to traditional tobacco.

Politics aside, when the data of the study was further analyzed, what was concluded was that among the 2 million vapers in the UK, 85% of them reported quitting smoking in the past 5 years. And if this is indicative of other parts of the world, most predictably in the US, it’s clear that many people are turning to e-cigarettes to fill a void not being met elsewhere.

Not enough research to deem electronic cigarettes a worthy option for smokers looking for an alternative? Wrong, according to Public Health England.

While the debate rages on, between controversy and approval for e-cigarettes, Public Health England recently made a bold announcement in the direction of positivity for electronic cigarettes. Acknowledging the fact that safety and purity regulation is a necessity, they also acknowledged the many positives these products hold, and that they have the potential to be a major source of assistance to those looking to quit smoking.

The stance cited a variety of research, publicly putting an end to the incessant cry of “not enough research or scientific data,” and zeroed in on the common sense ideal that without tobacco, the concept of smoking takes on an entirely different face. All of the information released by Public Health England was part of their Evidence-Based Review, and it examined a large collection of data and studies, as well as consumer information to reach their conclusions. This was done over an extended period of time, with a great amount of consideration on previous research, and was aimed to be conducted in a most unbiased manner.

Despite e-cigarettes not being marketed as such, the research found that electronic cigarettes are the number one choice among smokers as a cessation device. While these products are prohibited from being marketed in such a way, this is how users are utilizing them, and contrary to what major governmental agencies (in the USA, at least) may have to say about the regulatory semantics, smokers are proving to have very successful results. As the foreword of the Public Health England’s Evidence-Based Review states: “The role and impact of electronic cigarettes has been one of the great debates in public health in recent years and we commissioned this independent review of the latest evidence to ensure that practitioners, policy makers and, most importantly of all, the public have the best evidence available.” There was no political manipulation or hidden agenda behind this research. It’s about being upfront, honest, and giving the real deal statistics to those who need them. Whether or not the US follows suit, and begins regulating on such a common-sense, realistic manner will be seen in time; it the meantime, enormous kudos to Public Health England for being blunt where it matters, and making it clear that e-cigarettes are not the bad guy!

According to a study published by Public Health England, which is a subsidiary of the (British) Department of Health, electronic cigarettes are 95% less harmful than traditional tobacco cigarettes, and they are not a direct threat to the youth in an enticing manner. Pretty nice, convincing findings, right? This same report, with its pro-e-cig leanings, also stated that electronic cigarettes should not be regarded in the same manner as tobacco cigarettes, and even went so far in their endorsement to state that they are looking forward to the future when electronic alternative products, such as these, are used as prescribed medicinal items, prescribed in a manner to help smokers.

Electronic cigarettes, which have been vilified in a multitude of ways, have been touted as a gateway to smoking for the youth, as a mystery product loaded with questionable and/ or unsafe ingredients, and have fallen into the convenient, ever-so-clever catchall of “we do not know enough about them, therefore we cannot make a decision. These products have been the target of much negative press, with countless stories spun out of control in efforts to label the industry as dangerous, however, all the while users have continuously done their own research, and found success using these products on their own terms. Oftentimes, e-cigarette users have managed to harness such control of their smoking by using e-cigarettes, they are able to abandon the habit altogether.

This recent report from the British Department of Health comes as a huge sigh of relief for the industry. It is a public acknowledgement from a reputable government agency, from a reputable nation, making the effort in accepting the potential and promise that electronic cigarettes have in bettering the lives of smokers, instead of propagating the lies, and attempting to place them in the same classification as traditional cigarettes.

‘95% safer’ is a big percentage, and it’s a very convincing percentage. This is clear recognition that e-cigarettes are beginning to be seen as an alternative option to traditional smoking, and their many benefits are being considered by major health organizations. A representative speaking on behalf of the study said they are “looking forward to the arrival on the market of a choice of medicinally regulated products that can be made available to smokers by the NHS on prescription,” further indicating their knowledge of the promise that lies ahead for the betterment of public health.

This report done by Public Health England is excellent news. In no way is it the final word on how electronic cigarettes are going to be treated, but it is a step in the right direction. As a newer industry, it is understandable that everything is in a constant state of flux, however, having e-cigarettes viewed as a potential positive is immensely promising.

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